You are the one who cares and advocates for your loved one with disabilities. They depend on you. While you may take on the role of caregiver now, you may not be able to help but worry about what could happen if you were no longer around to care for them.
Estate planning can be one step in preparing for the future. While taking this step, you can also create a special needs trust designed specifically to help your loved one with disabilities in the future.
3 critical things to know
There are many details to understand about special needs trusts. It will be beneficial to meet with an estate planning attorney to fully understand what they offer, how they work and how to customize it to your loved one’s needs.
However, we will highlight three essential things you should know about these helpful tools:
- They protect your loved one’s eligibility for benefits: Many people with disabilities rely on government benefits. These benefits have very specific qualifications individuals must meet in order to obtain support – with one of those factors being income. Setting up a special needs trust can allow you to leave funds and assets to your loved one without making them ineligible for these benefits.
- One size does not fit all: Just like any estate planning document, you can customize a special needs trust to meet your loved one’s specific needs. Additionally, there are different types of special needs trusts. They are funded differently, so you must make sure you understand the differences between these types so you can choose the one that will work best for your family.
- Any trust needs a trustee: A special needs trust might be a particular type of trust. However, like any other trust, it will require a trustee to manage it. In choosing the trustee, you should carefully consider the general duties of a trustee under California law. Choose someone you trust, and someone who is responsible. Even more than that, you must also consider someone who understands your loved one’s individual needs. The trustee must strike the balance between managing the trust’s funds and protecting your loved one’s best interests.
As mentioned above, these three points are not the only details to understand or consider. You must learn more about the rules and terms regarding these tools so you can protect your loved one.